UFC: Blaydes And Volkov To Headline Fight Night On June 20

Just about everyone wants more sports right now, with most of the leagues around the world currently recovering from pandemic related disruptions, and the UFC is delivering on what fans want by continuing to set up new events. This time, the recent fight announcement was for June 20th’s Fight Night card, which will be headlined by two contenders in the heavyweight division: Alexander Volkov and Curtis Blaydes.

With both of them considered to be part of the new wave of heavyweights taking the reins in the division, and in good recent form in terms of results, it’s seemed like it would only be a matter of time before this fight would happen. Now, barring injury or some other unexpected events, fans around the world will finally get to see this matchup that was officially announced on Wednesday.

Blaydes is currently third in the divisional rankings while Volkov is seventh, meaning this matchup will also have large implications on the road to the belt. Blaydes has won his last three fights and can use a win against Volkov as part of his argument to compete for the title. Volkov, on the other hand, can get back to a winning streak with a win. His most recent fight was a victory against Greg Hardy, but in the fight before that, Derrick Lewis snapped his six fight winning streak.

The matchup is also a stylistic contrast. Blaydes is more known for his wrestling, something that has earned him praise from those who like that style and criticism from others who consider it ‘boring,’ while Volkov is known for his striking and size. Regardless of the end result and the styles used, there’s likely no way for Blaydes to make the fight boring against a fighter like Volkov.

The fight was originally supposed to happen in Saskatoon, but because of the current coronavirus situation, the fight is almost definitely going to be held at the UFC Apex facility. Still, it’s better than nothing as the sports world slowly makes its way back.